Bunker Hill Community College

ESL 087 ACADEMIC SPEAKING II w/(RWGXC)

w/reading, writing, and grammar across the curriculum

This high-intermediate course focuses on the speaking skills that are necessary in an academic setting. Students will discuss academic reading materials in small groups and begin to develop a method for delivering an oral presentation to a large group. All speaking activities will be organized around reading and writing exercises. Grammar is taught in the context of speaking, in the context of the reading materials, and in the context of student generated writing. This course must be completed with a "C" grade or better in order to take ESL 097. Prerequisite: A grade of C or better in all ESL level I courses or ESL Placement test.

GOAL
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to interact in small group and whole class discussions. They will be more confident expressing their opinions and asking for clarification. They will develop a method for delivering an oral presentation to a large group.

OBJECTIVES
I. Speaking
A. In pairs, small group, and whole class discussion, students will be able to:

1. narrate a story

2. facilitate group discussions

3. solicit/express opinions

4. use formal language when appropriate

5. interpret others’ views

B. Over the course of the semester, students will demonstrate significant improvement in preparing for and making presentations of at least ten minutes by practicing the following skills:

1. state agenda and main ideas

2. support with specific details

3. state conclusion

4. solicit/answer questions

5. use visuals, props, etc.

6. speak clearly enough to be understood by audience

7. clarify main points

C. Over the course of the semester, students will demonstrate significant improvement in the following areas:

1. pronunciation and articulation of reductions, tag questions, irregular past tense verbs

2. improve overall pronunciation and grammar

II. READING

A.Prior to or after class discussions, students will be assigned a reading passage of 500-750 words related to the topic. Over the course of the semester, the length and difficulty of the reading passages should increase in order to challenge the students’ levels of academic literacy. In class activities and homework assignments over the course of the semester, students will repeatedly:

1.demonstrate at least 75% comprehension of the assigned readings

2.relate the ideas of the reading passage to the discussion and vice versa

3.understand and use the master schedule and college catalog

4.make significant progress on the ESL 088 reading curriculum objectives

5.gather information from several sources on a topic related to class activities

III. WRITING

A. After reading articles on topics related to class discussions, students are expected to write summaries and/or personal reactions to the readings. After class discussions, students may write summaries of the discussion and/or reactions to the topic. In class activities and homework assignments over the course of the semester, students will demonstrate writing proficiency by doing the following:

1. write summary paragraphs of class discussions and /or presentations both as in-class assessments and as homework

2. write an opinion paragraph in reaction to discussions or presentations, relating one’s own ideas to those of others and reading passages

3. freely and frequently write journal entries on topics related to classroom activities

4. score at least 4.6 on the REEP rubric on an in class writing assignment by semester’s end

5. write a 2-3 page report as part of a project that involves extending a topic related to class activities

6. write at least 3 drafts of the report on a research based project

7. write an outline for each oral presentation

IV. GRAMMAR/EDITING OBJECTIVES

In the context of the class discussions, readings, and student-generated writing, students will practice or review the following structures:

1. present real/unreal conditionals

2. reported speech

3. perfect and modal aspects of present, past, and future tenses

4. gerunds and infinitives

5. subordination w/adverb and noun clauses

6. adjective clauses

7. editing the errors in drafts of a report on a research based project

V. PROJECT-BASED LEARNING OBJECTIVES

Students will extend their knowledge of a topic related to class activities by doing research and writing a report. In doing so, students will:

1. use resources such as the library, internet, and interviews, etc.

2. choose topic related to personal interests, career/educational goals, etc.

3. evaluate the usefulness of sources, relevance to one’s topic

4. revise at least two drafts before submitting a final draft

5. quote, paraphrase and cite sources

6. take notes on readings

7. base report on notes taken from readings

8. do 10 minute oral presentation based on report

RECOMMENDATIONS

A. RECOMMENDED TEXTBOOKS

1. Face to Face, Zanger, ITP, ISBN 0-8384-3954-3

2. Springboard to Sucess, ISBN

3. an English dictionary, American Heritage ESL Dictionary. Houghton Mifflin. 1998. ISBN 0-395-873-7

4. American Ways, 2nd ed. Crandall, Datesman, Kearney. Prentice Hall. 1997. ISBN 0-13-342015-9

B. RECOMMENDED TEACHING PROCEDURES

1. Prior to class discussions, students should be given a reading passage of 500-750 words related to the topic as homework.

2. Students should have ample opportunities to discuss topics in pairs, small groups, and as a whole class.

3. Students’ speech/presentations should be evaluated by the teacher periodically.

4. Students should write summaries and/or responses to the discussions/presentations both in-class and as homework.

5. Students should write frequently and about topics related to discussions and readings.

6. Students should revise and edit a t least one long, or several short writing assignments.

7. Students should be given 2-4 in-class writing assignments, which should be assessed w/the REEP writing Rubric.

C. RECOMMENDED PROJECTS

1. mini-research paper of 2-3 pages in preparation for 10-15 minute presentation on topic related to class activities

2. 2-3 page report in preparation for 10-15 minute presentation on movie, book, or TV program

3. 2-3 page report in preparation for 10-15 minute participation in a debate or panel discussion

4. conduct interviews on topic related to class activities, write 2-3 page report in preparation for 10-15 minute class presentation

5. prepare and give a mini-lecture to the class based on 2-3 page report

6. 2-3 page report in preparation for 10-15 minute presentation on current event news story

D. RECOMMENDED GRADING SCHEME

1. Presentations 25-40%

2. Notes and outlines of presentations 10-20%

3. Journal 15-35%

4. Project 15-25%

5. In-class assessments 15-25%

6. Attendance and participation 10-20%

7. Evaluations of peer presentations 10-20%

E. RECOMMENDED EXIT CRITERIA

1. Prepare for and give a 10 minute class presentation, in which at least 75% of the information presented is comprehensible.

2. In response to an open-ended question designed to elicit a reaction to readings or class discussions, student relates own ideas to those of others by writing at least a paragraph, which can be independently scored at least 4.6 on the REEP rubric.